Automatic pianoforte-player.



'No. 773,044. PATENTED OCT. 25, 1904. P. G. WEBB.

AUTOMATIC PIANOFORTE PLAY ER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29,1904.

no MODEL.

i l i UNITED STATES Patented October 25, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE- FRANCIS GILBERT WVEBB, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO THE AEOLIANOOMPANY, OF NEWV YORK, N. Y., A OORPORATIONOF NEWY JERSEY.

AUTOMATIC PlANOFORTE-PLAYER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,044, dated October 25, 1904.

Application filed June 29', 1904.

T0 (DZ/Z 1071,0777, it may concern:

Be it known that I, F ANoIs GILBERT WEBB, musical critic, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 19 Oathcart road, South Kensington, in the county of London, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements Relating to Automatic Pianoforte-Players, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to automatic or mechanical pianoforte-players, and particularly to those of the kind known as pneumatic pianoforte-players.

The chief object of my invention is to provide a device for enabling the strength of the blows with which the levers of the pneumatic pianoforte-player strike the keyboard of the pianoforte to be so controlled that the playing of the bass or "of thetrebble may at the will of the performer be softened relatively to each other and in such manner that there will be no sudden transition from the soft bass to the loud treble, and vice versa- According to my invention 1 provide at the rear or inner ends of the series of levers that strike the keyboard 0f the pianoforte (hereinafter referred to as striker-levers) a movable piece which may be in the form of a rod or bar extending transversely along the entire series of striker-levers. The surface of this rod or bar adjacent to the said striker-. levers is made resilient by means of springs, elastic cushions, or the like. For a portion of its length at the middle the resilient or elastic surface of the said rod or bar is preferably made level or parallel with respect to the series of striker-levers, said middle portion being at a higher plane than the end portions and joined thereto by slightly-inclined surfaces. The longitudinal axis of said rod or bar normally lies parallel with the series of striker-levers, and the rod or bar is so arranged that by suitable mechanism it can be shifted at the will of the performer into an oblique position toward the right or the left with respect to said striker-levers. When the rod or bar is in its parallel position, only the middle portion of the striker-levers will Serial No. 214,581. (No model.)

be restrained or restricted in their action on the pianoforte-keyboard and the relative tone at the bass and treble will be unaffected; but when said rod or bar is caused to assume its oblique position the tone of the bass relatively to the treble or of the treble relatively to the bass will be diminished or increased according as the obliquity of the rod or bar is greater toward the left or toward the right of the keyboard.

In order that my said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, I will describe the same more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a general view, partly in section, showing my invention applied to a pneumatic pianoforte-player of the well-known pianola kind. Fig. 2 is a sectional front elevation; and Fig. 3, a sectional end elevation, on a larger scale, showing my apparatus more clearly. Fig. 4 and 5 are detail views showing modifications of my apparatus.

A A are the series of striker-levers, which are pivoted at a and have their inner ends a connected by rods (6 with the pneumatics a by which they are operated, their outer ends a projecting from the casing A of the pianola so as to lie above the keys B of the pianoforte in a position to strike the same when actuated by the air-pressure as the perforated tunesheet travels along the tracker-board of the pianola in the well-known manner. O is the rod or bar that extends transversely beneath the said series of striker-levers A. This rod or bar has its upper surface at the middle part 0 level or parallel with the series of striker-levers A when said rod or bar is in its normal position, the said middle part being at a higher plane than the ends 0' 0' of the rod or bar and joined thereto by the slightlyinclined surfaces 0 0 (See Fig. 2.) The surface of the said rod or bar adjacent to the series of striker-levers A is provided with 2 resilient cushion O, which may comprise z flexible air-tube closed at its ends, so as t( form a resilient air-cushion. If desired, tln resilient cushion may be made of a tube 0 thin flexible material and be inflated to the l sented by the full lines in Fig. 2-only the extent necessary for obtaining the desired degree of resiliency thereof. In this case the said tube would be provided with a suitable non-return air-valve analogous to that of a pneumatic wheel-tire. Instead of the said air-cushion any other suitable kind of resilient device may be used. For instance, I may use helical or other springs C arranged as indicated in Fig. 5 and provided with adjusting-screws for enabling their resistance to be regulated. The said rod or bar C is supported at its ends by flexible pieces or links 0, F'

2 and 3, connected with the upper limbs c" of bell-crank levers pivoted at c" to the casing of the pianola. The lower limbs a of said bell-crank levers lie above or engage with wedge-shaped or inclined pieces (IZ (Z formed at or near the ends of a bar D. This bar is supported by fixed studs (Z ('Z, projecting through slots (ZQZ in said bar, so as to render it capable of moving longitudinally in either direction at the will of the performer. For thus longitudinally shifting said bar D it is connected with a hand-lever (5, whose outer end extends to the exterior of the pianolacasing in a convenient position to be actuated by the performer. hen the sliding bar D is shifted, say. toward the right in Fig. 2, the incline (Z at the left end thereof will lift the lower limb c" of the adjacent bellcrank lever, while the other incline, (F, at the opposite end of the said sliding bar D will permit the lower limb of the bell-crank lever adjacent thereto to descend by reason of the said incline (Z moving from its path. (See the dotted lines in Fig. 2.) The said bellcrank levers therefore operate to raise the lefthand end of the rod C and lower the right-hand end thereof, with the result that the said red O assumes the oblique position represented by the dotted lines in this ligure -that is to say, the inclined elastic or resilient surface c at the lefthand end of the rod U comes in proximity to and lies more or less parallel with the left-hand end of the series of striker-levers A, so that the said elastic surface exerts a restraining influence on the blows delivered by the striker-levers at this part, whereby the treble notes of the pianoforte are softened in tone. The middle surface 0 of said bar assumes a downwardlyinclined position from the left toward the right, with the result that the middle notes of the pianoforte will gradually increase in tone from the softened treble to the loud bass. If said rod D be shifted in the reverse direction to that above stated, then the bar C will be placed into an oblique position the reverse to that above stated, with the result that the bass notes will be softened in tone and the middle notes will gradually increase in tone :from the softened bass to the loud treble. As already stated, when the said bar C assumes its parallel positiont'. 6., the position repremiddle notes of the pianoforte will be softened in tone, the tone gradually increasing from the soft middle register toward both the loud bass and the loud treble. Obviously the extent and direction of obliquity that is given to said bar C by the performer will have the effect of diminishing or increasing the tone of thenotes of the bass relatively to the treble or of the treble relatively to the bass.

1 do not confine myself to the means hereinabove described for actuating the aforesaid rod or bar C, as any appropriate means may be employed therefor.

Instead of making the aforesaid elastic or resilient surface with two level surfaces joined by inclined surfaces the entire surface may be made convexly curved from end to end, as shown at Fig. et.

Altl'iough my invention is particularly intended for use with pneumatic piano forteplayers, it may, if required, be applied to other forms of automatic or mechanical. pianoforte-players, whether they be of the kind that consist of a separate machine which is brought to the keyboard of the pianoforte for playing the same or whether they be of the kind in which the pianoforte is combined therewith to form a single instrument.

Vhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the combination with the striker-levers, of a mov able bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having a resilient surface adjacent to the latter, and means whereby the said bar can at the will of the performer be caused to assume an oblique position. relatively to the plane of the striker-levers either toward the bass or the treble of the keyboard for the purpose specified.

2. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the combination with the striker-levers, of a movable bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having adjacent to the latter adouble inclined resilient surface joined by an intermediate level one, and means whereby the said bar can, at the will of the performer, be caused to assume an oblique position relatively to the plane of the strikerlevers either toward the bass or the treble of the keyboard for the purpose specified.

3. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the combination with the striker-levers, of a movable bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having adjacent to the latter a double inclined surface joined by an intermediate level one, a resilient cushion on said double inclined and level surface, and means whereby the said bar can at the will of the performer, be caused to assume an oblique position relatively to the plane of the strikerlevers either toward the bass or the treble of the keyboard for the purpose specified.

a. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the

IIO

combination with the striker-levers, of a movable bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having adjacent to the latter a double inclined surface joined by an intermediate level one, a hollow resilient cushion on said double inclined and level surface, and means whereby the said bar can at the will of the performer, be caused to assume an oblique position relatively to the planeof the striker-levers either toward the bass or the treble of the keyboard for the purpose specified.

5. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the combination with the striker-levers, of a movable bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having adjacent to the latter a double inclined surface joined by an intermediate level one, an inflatable air-tube on said double inclined and level surface, and means whereby the said bar can at the will of the performer, be caused to assume an oblique position relatively to the plane of the striker-levers either toward the bass or the grecble of the keyboard for the purpose speci- 6. In a mechanical pianoforte-player, the combination with the striker-levers, of a movable bar situated transversely with respect to said striker-levers and having a resilient surface adjacent to the latter a bar adapted to slide longitudinally with respect to the movable bar, bell-crank levers flexibly supporting the movable bar at the ends, inclined pieces situated near the ends of the sliding bar and supporting the free ends of the bellcrank levers, and lever mechanism for enabling the performer to shift said sliding bar toward the right or the left for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, in presence of two subscribing wit- .nesses, this 17th day of June, 1904.

FRANCIS GILBERT WEBB. Witnesses:

IVIELLERSH JACKSON, W. M. HARRIS. 

